Your Theatre's 'Denial' rises to challenge

How can the extermination of six-million people be misunderstood, factually incorrect or defended as mere embellishment for the sake of propaganda?

Comment

By Lorraine Lucciola

southcoasttoday.com

By Lorraine Lucciola

Posted Nov. 11, 2012 at 12:01 AM

By Lorraine Lucciola

Posted Nov. 11, 2012 at 12:01 AM

» Social News

How can the extermination of six-million people be misunderstood, factually incorrect or defended as mere embellishment for the sake of propaganda?

The Holocaust happened. Every sickening bit of it. It is an undeniable, shameful fact which most people accept.

Most people.

Bernard Cooper — an otherwise mild-mannered professor of engineering, whose work amounts to applying pressure to wood and watching it until it splits — is not most people. He is an intelligent, calculating, self-impressed egotist and hater, who experiences great pride and affirmation in the fact that his book, "The Great Deception," is read and relished by many like thinkers. Calm down, readers. This scenario and this individual are, thankfully, fictional, but none the less horrific.

Your Theatre, once again, has bravely chosen the bumpy way home, with its current, edgy production of "Denial" by playwright Peter Sagal. The script is extremely well-written and receives the skill and commitment of Your Theatre professionals to run it past the finish line.

Under the sensitive and intelligent direction of Stephen R. Kay, "Denial" is riveting excitement and suspense, right down to the interim music that accompanies scene changes. Kay has a knack for understanding the motivations of written, fictional characters, and more important, for knowing how to inspire his actors to demonstrate specific character traits or beliefs that uniquely define the people they play, whether they are likeable or not. The coup in direction and acting in this production rests in making these unforgettable characters, painfully real.

He casts wisely and if you're acquainted with the art of live performance and the individual mental processes actors embark upon to deliver startling, affecting results, then you can imagine how horrifically real their messages are when they pertain to a subject as sober as the Holocaust.

The infinitesimal, deliberate nuances of overall performances in this show, is to be lauded. People, their causes and life circumstances, are never one-dimensional. The beauty of this script and the actors' interpretations of it, demonstrate this truism.

If you were to cast Robert Duquette as a man whose life depended on selling vacuum cleaners, Duquette would invest himself, heart and soul, in the endeavor of selling more vacuums than anyone else, ever, and absolutely believe that this was his life calling. Give this accomplished actor a cause, a reason for being, an inner spring, and he will deliver the consummate and exact character portrayal needed, because he is that passionate about the art of acting and introducing us to yet another character.

"You've got to become the character," he says. This, of course, doesn't mean that actors cast in certain roles have the same mindsets of those they play.

Duquette plays Bernard Cooper — disturbingly composed, handsome, charming, damaged, dangerous and unyielding, as a Holocaust denier, with a book under his belt and a published newsletter avowing that the Holocaust was fiction, perpetrated by Henry Morgenthau, Jr. and others, to malign Adolph Hitler. When the F.B.I. raids his house, seizes his mailing lists and charges him with inciting violence, Cooper appeals to the American Civil Liberties Union, which refers him to ACLU lawyer, Abigail Gersten, artfully played by Linda Monchik.

Abby, a Jew, is versed in representing people with unpopular views but meets her intellectual match in Cooper. He is as passionate about his belief as she is in defending him and his first Amendment rights, as unpalatable as this is to her. They dance the one-up-man-ship dance in a game of darts as they reveal their expertise and familiarity with texts, documents, dates and strategies in Cooper's case, which Abby agrees to take on.

Monchik is completely believable as a legal professional who has total faith in the law of the land to render appropriate decisions. The actress is also able to show Abby's personal convictions and opinions in confrontations with Cooper and in her own moments of silent reflection.

The not-so-hidden gem of the piece is Roger Allen as Noah Gomrowitz, a gentlemanly, scholarly Jew who eventually comes face-to-face with Cooper. For viewers who have enjoyed Allen's appearances in Your Theatre pieces before, prepare yourself for what may be considered his finest role. Quite simply, Allen is brilliant in each carefully delivered linguistic nuance, physical action and business with others on stage.

Lawrence R. Houbre, Jr., as Adam Ryberg, State Prosecutor, is the epitome of protocol, compromise and a justice-seeking professional who finds himself on the brink of exasperation with both Cooper and Gersten, in an honest and important performance. It is a welcomed change of pace to see Houbre on stage as a departure from his administrative and hands-on duties with Your Theatre.

Stefanie, Abby's secretary, is perfectly played by Chantel Deane, in her first major role with Your Theatre. She is an important talent to hang on to. Deane is a natural with stage direction, speaking presentation and audience like-ability. We honestly believe her lines and relationship with Abby and hope to see more of her in the future.

Dennis J. Smith, as Nathan, also delivers an impressive surprise performance. His character's off-handedness provides some humor, but subsequent dialogue with Noah (Allen) reveal a depth of performing skill many of us have not seen before.

"Denial" encompasses a prime example of ensemble acting, demonstrating the beauty and understanding of give-and-take among performing professionals. It is highly recommended as a must-see show, for both its entertainment and educational value. Your Theatre scores another win!